Prosecutors seek arrest warrant for ferry captain

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Prosecutors say they've asked a court to issue an arrest warrant for the captain of the South Korean ferry that sank two days ago, leaving hundreds missing and feared dead.

Rescue workers carry the body of a passenger aboard The Sewol ferry which sank in the water off the southern coast, at a port in Jindo, South Korea, Friday, April 18, 2014. Fresh questions arose about whether quicker action by the captain of a doomed ferry could have saved lives, even as rescuers scrambled to find hundreds of passengers still missing Friday and feared dead. (AP Photo/Yonhap)

Prosecutors said Friday that they have also requested arrest warrants for two other crewmembers.

The investigation into the ferry disaster has focused on the sharp turn it took just before it started listing and whether a quicker evacuation order by the captain could have saved lives. Investigators are also determining whether the captain abandoned the ship.

Rescuers are struggling to find about 270 people still missing and feared dead.

At least 28 bodies have been recovered. Officials said there were 179 survivors and about 270 people remain missing, many of them high school students.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Police say a high school vice principal who had been rescued from a sinking South Korean ferry has been found hanging from a tree.

The news of the death came Friday as rescuers scrambled to find hundreds of people still missing from the ferry and feared dead. The passengers included 325 second-year students from Danwon High School heading to a southern island on a four-day trip.

A police officer says the vice principal, identified only by his surname Kang, was found dead on the island of Jindo where rescued passengers have taken shelter. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity citing department rules. He didn't elaborate.

The ferry sank Wednesday.

Officials have confirmed 28 deaths. But that number is expected to rise sharply. About 270 people are missing.